Shloka 84
बक-गौतमाख्यानम् / The Baka–Gautama Account
On Gratitude and Friendship Ethics
असिर्विशसन: खड््गस्तीक्ष्णधारो दुरासद: । श्रीगर्भो विजयश्चैव धर्मपालस्तथैव च,१. असि, २. विशसन, ३. खड्ग, ४. तीक्ष्णधार, ५. दुरासद, ६. श्रीगर्भ, ७. विजय और ८. धर्मपाल-ये ही वे आठ नाम हैं
bhīṣma uvāca | asir viśasanaḥ khaḍgas tīkṣṇadhāro durāsadaḥ | śrīgarbho vijayaś caiva dharmapālas tathaiva ca | ete hi te aṣṭa nāmāni |
Bhīṣma berkata: “(Senjata ini) dinamakan Asi, Viśasana, Khaḍga, Tīkṣṇadhāra, Durāsada, Śrīgarbha, Vijaya, dan Dharmapāla—itulah benar lapan namanya.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames the sword through eight epithets that balance terror and auspicious duty: it is deadly (viśasana, tīkṣṇadhāra) yet ideally a dharma-instrument (dharmapāla), implying that force is justified only when aligned with righteous protection and lawful punishment.
Bhishma is enumerating the traditional names of the sword/weapon, presenting it as an object with recognized attributes and functions—formidable in battle, yet conceptually tied to victory and the safeguarding of dharma.